Tag: mold

Mold has always been an allergen, but awareness and questions surrounding mold have grown as more media attention has been given to extensive problems regarding mold in homes. Mold spores can enter your house in a number of ways, including on your clothing and with the movement of air. Many parts of the home contain enough food and adequate temperatures to allow the mold spores to grow. After the mold settles all that it needs is a little moisture to grow.

If mold in homes continues to grow it can lead to respiratory congestion, eye irritation, headaches and fatigue. For some asthma can be triggered by mold in homes. If you find mold in your home you need to find the moisture source, then make the necessary changes to reduce or control the moisture and finally to safely get rid of any mold in your house. There are many ways you can deal with mold in your house and prevent it from growing in the first place.

If you are constantly getting a musty smell in your basement then you may want to run a dehumidifier in order to deal with mold in homes. Mold in bathrooms is typically a bigger problems during the winter when a lot of moisture is placed in the air. Be sure you wipe moisture off the shower walls and tub while drying your used towels elsewhere in order to prevent mold in homes. However, the most important step for bathrooms is to provide ventilation to the exterior in order to get rid of the moisture before it can even build up in the bathroom.

When it comes to removing existing mold you should physically remove as much as possible with a strong detergent. Then rinse and follow with a bleach solution to sanitize the area. If you can’t easily clean off the mold then you should throw away any removable items. If the mold is particularly bad then you should consider hiring a professional to remove the mold for you.

Mold is a naturally occurring element in nature.  It helps aid the breakdown of dead organic matter such as leaves and dead wood.  When this element becomes home mold, however, it can be a source of problems for humans.  Mold cannot survive without moisture, so it’s important for people to realize this when they practice the prevention of home mold.  Since mold travels through the air in microscopic tiny spores that we cannot see, it is almost impossible to know for sure whether or not is has infiltrated your home unless you can see it or smell it.  Otherwise, a home mold test kit should be used.  Mold can be different colors, typically white, black, or green.  For people with allergic sensitivities or asthma, mold can be a real nightmare to deal with, since it helps to trigger these already annoying symptoms.  While most home mold grows in small spaces, sometimes it can spread quickly and over a large area.

If home mold is getting to be out of control, it is best not to try and remove it yourself.  Contact a mold inspection and removal specialist if you see an area of home mold growing ten by ten feet or larger.  If the area is small, usually bleach or detergent with hot water can kill it off within a confined area.  Be sure to wear protective gloves so that the mold does not get on your skin or into cuts.  A mask can’t hurt either, since it can help to prevent you from breathing in the spores.  Any kind of porous material such as carpet that has been infected should be thrown away immediately, since there could be spores growing deep into the material that you cannot detect.  Try not to paint over mold as it can grow or spread through paint.

Mold growth is a fairly common problem that will probably occur in everyone’s homes at least one time throughout their ownership of the home.  While every house can be faced with mold growth, it often occurs in older homes that are more susceptible to moisture and water, two things that are the leading causes in mold growth. 

Now why is mold growth a problem?  Well,  besides the obvious fact that it is unappealing to the homeowners and definitely a cause for concern for any potential home buyers if the home was to ever be for sale, the mold growth is also very unsafe for people’s health.  Mold growth develops in people’s homes when tiny spores, spores so small that they can not be seen by the human eye, drift into homes and land on wet or moist surfaces.  These surfaces are the perfect breading grounds for mold and it can grow at a very rapid rate. 

Mold growth causes many things, some of which are respiratory problems like asthma and other lung infections, irritated eyes, dry coughs, throat and nose irritations, memory impairment, and irritable bowl syndrome.  Because of these potential health risks, it is important for homeowners to remove mold growth as soon as they can.

Mold growth can be removed by professionals or by the homeowners as long as the homeowners take the proper precautions like wearing a mask while removing the mold and disposing of the mold in the correct manor.  While minor cases of mold growth can usually be removed easily, it is important to contact a professional when dealing with larger modeled areas.

It is a good idea for homeowners to check their home for mold growth areas every few years so that they can catch the mold before it has the chance to spread and become a serious and expensive problem.  By keeping a home clean and rid of moisture and water, people should be able to control and hopefully eliminate mold grow in the future.

Owning a home is a wonderful investment and a great responsibility.  Things like a broken air conditioner, a leaky roof, and a new floor are all typically problems that need to be solved from time to time.  When mold takes over a home, however, the problems can be on a much bigger scale.  That’s why it is extremely important to be aware of the signs of mold infestation, so you can get rid of it as quickly as possible.  House mold can cause a lot of damage to wood, flooring, and even walls of your home.  The quicker you can spot it, the faster you can kill and remove it.  At the first sign of house mold, the key is to act quickly.  Mold can start to rot wood at a very rapid pace, which means you would end up having to replace windows and sills, or even worse, foundations or walls.

It is important to note that a lot of house mold can be hidden and go unnoticed for very long periods of time.  Mold has been known to creep in between the wall and wallpaper, in between insulation, and in the floorboards.  The key to preventing mold is to keep moisture levels down.  If you live in a very humid area of the country, a dehumidifier can be a real help.  Also, there are now paints that contain anti mold agents already mixed in. If you find that it’s too late and the presence of house mold is already there, something called biocides can help to kill it off.  Some kinds of regular detergent or bleaches also work to kill off house mold.  When it comes to killing and removing it, however, it is often recommended that you consult a professional so it can be done safely without spreading it further throughout the home.

For home owners, nothing can raise more issues than finding a mold problem. Whether you are buying or selling a home it is important to check for a mold problem and know how to deal with it properly. It is best for buyers to know what to look for and sellers to know who is responsible for fixing the problem.

Much debate is still being discussed over the health risk posed by mold. There is always mold in the environment and only some people are affected by it. For some with allergies or respiratory problem it only takes a small amount of mold to cause a problem. The symptoms of mold can range from mild stuffiness and headache to severe cases that include fever, shortness of breath and infections of the lungs.

When you are looking for a home you should focus your attention on where water is used or where it can leak into the house. Previous problems with water leaks can be indicated by a musty, damp odor. Common places for mold to grow include bathrooms, the kitchen and the laundry room. Check for water on top of a kitchen or bathroom cabinet, a leaking faucet, signs of the toilet overflowing or sweating and water stains on the ceiling or walls. It is also a good idea to examine the roof, doors, windows, skylights and any carpeting.

It is also important that you ask the right questions when looking for a home. Ask if the house has sat vacant or if it has been used as a rental property. These types of homes may have been neglected. Many renters overlook things like changing the furnace filter or making sure water doesn’t collect in the air conditioner drain pan. Also if people avoid using the air conditioning because of cost can cause humidity to build up in a home.

Countless homeowners around the end of the year make the annual visit to the attic to collect the holiday decorations and winter clothes and find spots and blotches covering the bottom of the roof sheathing. Upon further inspection these spots turn out to be none other than mold in atticspaces not only in your home but your neighbors and many others!  So what does energy conservation have to do with mold in atticspaces? Let’s consider how the house behaves as an entire system, and we will find that they are often directly related. 

Mold requires continual moisture to form and to thrive, so sources of moisture must be present.  Could the moisture have possibly come from outdoors? Perhaps the moisture came from indoors? Well, during the heating season, the interior of the house frequently has high moisture levels, especially in the bathroom and kitchen. If an interior check shows that all bathroom fans, kitchen vents, etc. are properly ducted completely outdoors and not into the attic and the amount of insulation is sufficient and the attic is well ventilated then this should not be the problem.  Air leaks are the leading source of energy loss in most houses, and a frequent source of chronic moisture that can cause mold in atticspaces. Most homeowners are well aware of air leaks around windows and doors (especially old ones), but many overlook the numerous gaps leading directly into the attic and therefore the perfect culprit for the growth of mold in atticspaces!

Take a longer look for those Halloween decorations next time and observe all of the holes near light fixtures, windows, in floorboards, and other places in the attic.  These holes are letting warm air from your heating in the main rooms of the house up to condense on the cold walls, floors, etc resulting in mold in attic crevices, floorboards, near fixtures, and other places.  Seal up these holes and not only will you see less mold but perhaps save yourself some green on the winter bills.

Living in an area of high humidity, can cause mold problems in our homes. Molds are tiny organisms that eat natural substances and replicate by releasing spores. They are a variety of fungus that in nature help to decompose or breakdown vegetation. Mold problems occur when they enter our houses and start to digest them.

The best way of dealing with mold problems is stopping them before they start. If you see or suspect there may be a problem with moisture building up, through a leaking roof, a crack in your foundation, a leaky plumbing fixture, or a poorly ventilated bathroom you should take steps to correct the trouble before it becomes a mold problem. The telltale signs that you have mold problems are a musty odor or spotting black or wet specks in a damp area. Stopping leaks, and ventilating the area are often enough to prevent mold. A dehumidifier in your basement is also an excellent preventive measure. 

Removing mold problems once you have can be difficult. Using a mold killer such as a fungicide or a full strength solution of distilled vinegar can be highly effective, but these take time to work, and can take multiple applications to fully eliminate the mold problems. Renting or purchasing an ozone-generating machine will remove the mold, but the room must be evacuated while the machine is working due to the high concentration of ozone needed to kill the mold. This also often needs to be repeated to be successful.

If the mold problems are too severe for a mold killer to eradicate it, then you will need to replace the affected materials such as dry wall, or carpet. The discarded material should be tightly sealed in plastic and discarded immediately. Use of protective clothing including gloves, respirators and eye protection are recommended.

The most common cause of attic mold is a poorly ventilated attic. In cooler climates, warm, moist air coming from heated areas of a home will rise up. If an attic is unfinished, cold and not well ventilated, moisture will begin to build. This can be a catalyst for attic mold growth. These types of problems are usually associated with older homes built before codes specified that attics be well ventilated. When an older home has a new roof installed, soffit and ridgeline vents are required to be put in under the modern building codes. Some attics that are prone to the build up of moisture need a vent with a motorized fan to help exhaust the moist air.

If your attic is covered with a cellulose insulation, then it will be more  susceptible to attic mold . If the mold infestation is light, this will not pose a great health risk to the homes inhabitants because air will move up. However if the build up of attic mold is severe you may want to remove it. First you should take a sample of the attic mold, by pressing a sticky tape to it, and bringing it to a lab for testing . You should be able to find one through your local Yellow pages.

Once you have identified the type of mold you are dealing with you can take steps to remove it. There are several ways to do this. You can remove and replace the insulation, or dry wall. This is expensive, and you will have to wrap the debris in heavy gage plastic and dispose of it properly. If you feel that you can kill the attic mold, treat it with a commercial fungicide, or full strength distilled vinegar. This will take a few days for the mold killer to be effective, and you will have to wash and rinse the area, and allow it to fully dry to prevent a re-occurrence.

Mold is a fungus that thrives on decomposing organisms.  You will find mold in areas where there is excessive moisture, high humidity, and decomposing matter that serves as a host.  Some of this matter includes decomposing leaves, plants, and animals.  Mold exposure is dangerous because many people react to mold in a harmful manner.  However, it should be noted that not all people respond to mold in the same way. Mold exposure may cause allergies in one person, and another person may not seem to be affected at all.  However, mold exposure is a serious health risk for babies, the elderly, pregnant women, and those who are sick or have compromised immune systems.  For these people, mold exposure poses many harmful health risks.

Some signs and symptoms of mold exposure include sneezing, running watering eyes, coughing, itchiness, rashes, and breathing difficulties.  More serious signs can include complications with asthma, respiratory illness, and lung infections.  There are certain types of mold that are toxic and can be fatal if exposure is severe and left untreated.  There is no doubt about it; mold must be removed from our homes, living environments, and businesses to ensure the health, safety, and well being of citizens.

Since you may not be able to detect mold with your eye, it is important to use a testing kit that will detect the presence of mold even if you can’t see it.  If you find out that your home or business does have mold, you will need to remove it immediately.  For some areas, you will be able to effectively treat it yourself.  Bleach is a fantastic solution that kills mold on contact, however there may be mold found in hard to reach areas and the services of a professional will be needed.  If you need to hire a contractor to remove the mold, don’t hesitate to do so.  It is vitally important that you treat the mold and remove it at once.

Mold in basement is one of the most common areas for mold to occur. Mold is a fungus and as a living organism it requires water and something to feed on in order to grow. Mold in basement is common because these conditions are easily met, in fact it is harder to keep a basement dry.

You can typically find mold in basement by the sight or smell. If you thing you have mold in basement then you should identify where the water is entering the basement. Often water can enter a basement from clogged gutters or poor yard drainage. Even without cracks in your basement walls, pressure can still push water inside.

The best way to avoid mold in basement is to quickly fix and water leaks or spills. Try to have any water problems fixed and completely dry within twenty-four to forty-eight hours in order to keep your basement as dry as possible. Direct water away from the house so that it doesn’t leak into the basement. Ascertain whether or not the house is higher than the land around it—a slope will direct water away.

When you notice water on basement pipes or windows you should dry the surfaces and work quickly to reduce humidity. When there is a lot of water it can be a sign of high humidity. You may also need to purchase a humidity meter in order to monitor your basement humidity levels and keep it under sixty percent.

If you have dryers in your basement then make sure they are vented outside, since the moisture from drying clothes can stay in the air and encourage the growth of mold. The same applies to any showers you may install in the basement, have an exhaust fan to pull the moist air out of the bathroom while the shower is still running.